I have a stock LG4 and I know one of the bigger probs is the exhaust. So if I get a highflow cat right now will it give me some hp or make it sound a bit louder? I plan on getting headers and a whole system from flowmaster once i get a little more money over the summer, but will this help at all right now?

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87Camaro RS
305 carb.
K&N air filter
HyperTech Stage II chip
160 Thermostat

 

If you don't have to go through a visual emissions inspection take the cat off and your car will sound a lot deeper and louder. You'll get some power too. I ran my 84 without a cat for years before I put one on and now I want to take it off again. I just put a high flow cat on and am extremely dissapointed with the amount of restriction it adds compared to no cat at all. It sure quieted my car down a lot too. Don't like it at all. So I guess whaat I'm trying to say is, if I were you I would either take the cat off or don't bother wasting money on a high flow cat if you don't need a new one because it probably won't make much of a difference.

 

i dont have the visual, but i have the sniffer. can i pass with no cat?

 

Yeah, I had to pass the sniffer also. As long as your car is tuned up it shouldn't be a problem. I was passing even with a performance cam in my 84 Camaro. There is also a bunch of little tricks you can do to help you pass. But all in all you shouldn't have a problem if your emissions test is the same as we have in Canada. You could also take the cat out and just muffler clamp a pipe in its place and then when you have to get tested just swap in the cat.

 

Doesn't it giev off a strong odor though? like a really really rich smell?

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87Camaro RS
305 carb.
K&N air filter
HyperTech Stage II chip
160 Thermostat

 

I have a stock LG4 in my 83 TA. It's getting headers, high flow cat and a Hooker cat-back as soon as all the parts get here from the US of A.

Anyway, before we got the emissions test in Ontario I ran it with a straight pipe instead of the cat. To make a long story short - it went a lot better w/out the cat.

I don't think putting a high flow cat on the stock exhaust will make enough difference to justify the cost.

Wait until you've got the cash and do it all at once.

 

I've been considering removing the cat also. I too have an Lg4, with a Flowmaster muffler. The Flowmaster sounds a hell of a lot better than stock exhaust, but I was still dissapointed with the volume of the sound. It's deep and aggressive sounding, but just not loud. I wanted a really mean sounding exhaust, with enough volume to set off car alarms when you're driving through the city. A lot of people say that this will only attract the cops attention. But if my goal was to keep a low profile, I wouldn't be driving a bright yellow Camaro. Anyway, is gutting and removing a cat the same thing? If not, which is better/easier? If I did this would I be able to pass Mass emmissions (I know they're comparably strict? Are there fines for not having one?

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'87 SC 305 "Chrome Yellow"
ASCD Turbo hood
AR rims
Flowmaster cat-back
Alpine deck to 4 Polks
'81 Z-28 "Dodge Viper GTS pearl blue"
H.O. 350, TH-400 w/ B&M megashifter
Harwood LS1 hood
Z-racing rims
True Dual

 

Yeah, it does smell a little more fuely than with a cat, but its not too bad. It's like being at the race track.

 

Considering that the cat smells like rotten eggs I'd rather have the fuel smell any day.

Gutting it is when you smash the interior out of the cat and then just put it back on. Not the best way to go because it screws up the exhaust flow.

You can gut the cat and put a pipe through it which means it will flow properly and still look legal.

I just got some shop to bend up a pipe that would fit in where the cat assembly was. I think this is the easiest way to do it.

I couldn't pass our emissions w/out putting a cat on. If they're anyway strict in you jurisdiction then you probably won't pass either.

As for fines - that depends where you live.

Once my 83TA hits 20 years I won't have to bother with this emissions **** anymore.

 

Hey George,

Every since I put a cat on my car the exhaust smells like rotten eggs also, like yours does. Do you know why this is or what causes it?

 

I read somewhere why they smell like that but I can't remember now. Shouldn't be too hard to find the answer though.

It seems worse with some types of gas like Petro-Can. Maybe they don't refine the sulphur out of it or something.

The original cat didn't stink at all but when I put this new one to get through emissions it's really foul.

 

i just put a high flow cat and new exaust on my car and it stinks like hell, and lets out smoke too, before with no converter, it didnt stink or smoke.

 

So is it easy to take it out, replace it with a pipe, and switch back and forth with ease around inspection time?

 

If you have all that pipe bending stuff it should be simple to do it yourself. If you don't, see if you can find an exhaust shop to make up a pipe for you, $30 or so, and then it should swap in with a couple bolts or muffler clamps depending on how your cat is installed.